I have seen numerous articles lately describing how US farm subsidies have contributed to low world commodity prices, which is harmful to the interests of third world countries. These relatively poor nations need to sell their farm products at higher prices so that food can be purchased for the poor. Now that commodity prices are higher, we are told that this is bad news for third world countries, which find it more difficult to purchase food for the poor.

So.....low farm prices are bad and high farm prices are bad, for the same reason.....I am beginning to think that much that has been writen about this subject is not worth reading. I'm convinced that the US needs to have the best farm program possible (and that means changing from the current unhinged mess) and the best trade policies possible. A lot of this inconsistent blather is not helpful in reaching these goals.

On ESPN's Mike and Mike show this week, one of the Mikes said that Cleveland, with LeBron, was "sexy", while the Spurs, while more talented, were decidedly not "sexy".

One would think that the press would see this finals matchup as "David vs Goliath"......but I guess it is seen more as "Paris Hilton vs Meryl Streep". Personally, I think that both Meryl and the Spurs are pretty hot.......

Sports commentary in Salon has recently been in fine form.....First Joan Walsh gushes lovingly over the infamous juicehead that plays for her Giants, and wonders how all these critics can't just shut up about the steroids and just accept his amazing performance just for what it is.

Then King is upset because the NBA won't bend the rules in order to allow his preferred team (the Suns) a better chance to advance in the playoffs.

Next King wants to erase the rule about offensive charging, as he thinks that allowing an unobstructed path to the basket will result in more of that entertaining, uptempo style of play.

And then next King is claiming that those critics that somehow cannot just come to terms with the record setting performance of the above mentioned juicehead are just being "childish".

Finally, today, King is urging that the NBA rules be "tweaked", so that the recent Western conference uptempo style teams (read Phoenix) might more likely advance in the playoffs and potentially attain a championship. Well, just let me say this about that.......The Dallas Mavs were the Suns before the Suns were the Suns. The Mavs developed Steve Nash as a point guard before the dog-assed Suns stole him for the exact price of Nothing. Nash was just as good with the Mavs as he has been with the Suns. In the playoffs, more physical teams would punish and manhandle Nash and the Mavs, and the national press would refer to the Mavs as "soft", and "flawed". No one offered to change the rules to give the Mavs a better chance. And no one should give the soft, flawed, whiney Suns a break either. The Spurs are a better team, and will be a markedly better representive in the finals than the Suns. This Phoenix will go down in flames every year in the playoffs, and not rise from the ashes untill the start of the next year's season.

My team's players never flop......but opposing teams do it all the time. It's best not to worry about it. It's too easy to get all distracted and be whining about it like a bunch of losers. Best to play under control and not go barrelling into a defender who has established defensive position.

ClaudeProvost.......

I've seen the video over and over of the Suns players coming unteathered. I've seen mention of Duncan doing the same, but havn't seen the evidence of it. If you are correct, I'm sure that the Suns will make that argument to the league office. If so, yes, Duncan should have also been suspended. I assume that if all the players on both benches had come unteathered, then the next game would be truly 5 on 5.....unless an on court player like Horry were also suspended, then 5 on 4.

"Lets not rehash all that", he says, immediately after rehashing all that. This is the most boneheaded of non issues. The coaches most decidedly did not control the Suns players. Granted, Stoudemier and Diaw were corraled after the fact and pulled back to the bench area, certainly in hopes that their walkabout had not been noticed by anyone, but file this in the "closing the barn door after the horse has run off" file.

"They didn't do any harm." Neither did Paris Hilton.....nor did she really intend any harm in driving with a suspended license. This is an extremely weak and irrelevant spin. I agree, if this is all you've got, it's not worth rehashing.

And for the Suns and Spurs being the two best teams in the NBA.......I know that the Mavs will not be the best team this year, although they were certainly the best in the regular season. I think that the Spurs are the best of the remaining teams, but they may not live up to this prediction. The whiney Suns have no claim to the best of anything so far in their NBA history, and will soon join the Mavs on the "wait till next year" bench.